How To Get Rid Of Roaches With Home Remedies

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Roaches are hideous creatures that can grow to over 2 inches long and can quickly render your otherwise great home not so welcoming.

While some people keep them as pets, most find them revolting, and although you would rather spend your weekend doing fun activities, you may need to take time to get rid of roaches.

You can utilize various home remedies to get rid of roaches overnight and have your tidy home back. However, eradicating them isn’t an easy task.

You may choose to use commercial cockroach killers like Advion Cockroach Gel Bait or home remedies to get rid of them without putting your pets and family at risk.

Type Of Cockroaches You Would Find In Your Home

While more than 4500 cockroach species are gathered throughout the world, calling the six continents home, you will not find all of them at your home.

So, which roaches are commonly found in homes?

1. German Cockroaches

The world’s most common species of cockroach is oval and flat-shaped, with two antennas and six legs. It can grow to a length of ½ inch to 5/8 inches. Although they have wings, these roaches prefer running to flying.

German roaches’ color ranges from light brown to tan, and their backs have distinct dark stripes. They gravitate towards humid, warm places near sources of moisture and food. They multiply rapidly, with one female capable of producing over 30 000 baby roaches annually.

2. American Cockroaches

It is commonly called the palmetto bug, Bombay canary, or water bug. The American cockroach is a significant bug in the USA and the world’s largest house-infesting cockroach.

It’s oval-shaped, 1 ¼ -2 1/8 inches, reddish brown, and the back of its head has a yellow band.

American roaches can bite but rarely do. Despite their name, these roaches’ origin isn’t North America; evidence shows they were shipped in the 1600s from Africa.

Also, their lifespan is around two years, making them among the longest-lived roaches.

Related: What Does a Baby Cockroach Look Like

3. Brown-Banded Cockroaches

While these small cockroach species are common in the United States today, they first arrived in the country from Cuba in 1903.

Brown-banded roaches usually lurk in bathrooms, kitchen cabinets, and picture frames, among other areas at home.

Also Read: How to get rid of roaches in car

Brown-banded roaches are oval-shaped, ½ inches long, and have an average lifespan of 206 days.

They reproduce quickly, with one female laying around 14 capsules of eggs in their lifetime, with every capsule having 10 to 18 eggs.

Also Read: Peppermint Oil For Roaches

What Attracts Roaches to My Home?

 

Before getting rid of roaches, take a minute to identify why they are in your home in the first place. While a dirty home makes a home attractive to cockroaches, it’s not uncommon to find them in a clean house.

Well, let’s see the different reasons roaches are in your home.

1. Food Sources

Being omnivores, cockroaches eat anything, with their favorite foods being meats, greasy food, sweets, and starches.

Leaving crumbs on your counters, pet foods on your floors, and dirty dishes on your sink is similar to telling roaches to come in. Cockroaches also love garbage cans because they will not miss something to eat there.

Keeping a clean home is in your best interests, ensuring your floors and countertops are particle-free and maintaining a clean sink. Also, take out the garbage regularly and close the trash can lids.

2. Shelter

Your home offers a conducive place for roaches to escape predators and stay warm in winter. They will create a home in your home’s forgotten and quiet areas.

These include under furniture and large appliances, inside kitchen cabinets, behind your picture frames, and in damp areas such as bathrooms, sinks, and toilets.

Also Read: Why am i seeing big roaches all of a sudden

3. Water

Leaky faucets and pipes, pet water, and open showers, among other water sources, could be why roaches are in your home.

4. Location

Sometimes you may be unlucky to live in an area cockroaches find attractive, including tastes, features, and odors.

For example, American roaches can thrive in clean places; they just need to get into your home through open entryways or cracks.

5. Landscape

Roaches may find your landscaping attractive if it has certain things. For instance, grill residue, bird feeders, flowerpots, fruit plants, and bird seeds can bring cockroaches to your property.

Related: What to pour down drain to kill roaches

How Roaches Enter Your Home

Below are the places roaches use to enter your home.

1. Vent and Pipe Holes

Roaches can go inside your house through vents that are not well sealed or holes in your pipes. Watch out for potential roach entry points when servicing or replacing your vents and pipes.

2. Doors and Windows

Windows and doors that do not close properly or have gaps and cracks provide roaches with the perfect places to enter your house.

3. Bringing Used Furniture Inside

Cockroaches can come into your house through the used items you bring inside, like old furniture.

Also Read: Why Do I See More Roaches After Bombing

How To Get Rid Of Roaches Overnight Home Remedies

When faced with a roach problem, you will want to eradicate them instantly. Failure to do so can quickly lead to a big infestation because these creatures multiply quickly.

So, use these home remedies to get rid of roaches overnight.

1.  Use Baking Soda

You probably have baking soda in your house already, and that’s good because it offers a fast and easy way to eliminate roaches instantly.

When roaches eat baking soda and then drink water, the reaction produces gases that kill them. This remedy is affordable and non-toxic.

Related: Does Baking Soda Kill Roaches?

Dice onions (a handful), sprinkle baking soda and put the recipe in areas with cockroach activity.

Mix sugar with baking soda. Place the dish with this mixture in a strategic place and a second dish with water next to it.

2. Bay Leaves

Place bay leaves in areas where you have seen roaches. Roaches hate the smell of bay leaves and will stay away.

3. Boric Acid

This naturally occurring compound features a combination of boron and water and is found in plants and fruits.

It is safe for pets and humans but sticks to the wings and legs of roaches if they touch it and affects their digestive and nervous systems upon ingesting it.

Get rid of roaches in apartment by sprinkling little boric acid on a plate, then put peanut butter or orange peel with it and place it in an area with cockroach activity.

4. Borax

Like boric acid, borax kills cockroaches by damaging their digestive systems. Roaches do not necessarily have to ingest it to die: their exoskeletons can get damaged if enough borax gets on their bodies’ exteriors, causing rapid dehydration and death.

Also read: Borax for cockroaches

Mix equal parts of borax with a sweet substance such as sugar and position it strategically.

5. Diatomaceous Earth (DE)

This organic and natural insecticide has many uses, including food preservation and pest control. In addition, it is an excellent roach killer as it dehydrates the creatures and ruins their exoskeletons when they come into contact with it.

Related: Diatomaceous Earth For Roaches

Sprinkle food-grade diatomaceous earth on surfaces displaying roach activities. This remedy is safe for pets and children, affordable, and effective.

6. Cleanliness

Roaches are attracted to food and moisture, so keeping your kitchen and bathroom clean and dry can help deter them. Clean up spills immediately, don’t leave dirty dishes in the sink, and store food in sealed containers.

Read More: How to get rid of ants in the house

How Do I Keep Roaches Out of My House?

Keeping cockroaches out of your house should be something to aspire to and work towards.

a) Clean Your House

Make your house unwelcoming to roaches by:

• Cleaning spills and crumbs instantly.
• Washing dirty dishes immediately.
• Clearing out pet food regularly.
• Removing standing water and eliminating leaks.
• Taking out garbage regularly.
• Regularly sweeping and mopping floors.
• Clean your kitchen appliances like garbage disposals, dishwasher, stovetop, and backsplash.

b) Store Food Properly

Keep your food in airtight plastic or glass containers and refrigerators. Don’t leave veggies and fruits on your counters.

c) Seal Entry Points and Cracks

Check and seal cracks around your home, including windows, doors, vents, foundations, electric lines, plumbing, and gas lines.

d) Remove Cardboard Boxes and Newspapers

Get rid of or recycle cardboard boxes and newspapers.

e) Fix Leaks

Identify and fix plumbing leaks on your sinks, appliances, faucets, and refrigerators.

How to Get Rid of Roaches Outside Your House

1. Clean Up

Do the following to make your property unconducive for roaches.

• Empty birdbaths and pots with water.
• Secure and cover trash cans.
• Remove overgrown underbrush, leaf piles, stagnant water, and wood piles.
• Trim the plants on your foundation to ensure they aren’t touching the house.

2. Place Bait

Position baits next to ledges, foundations, fences, outbuildings, and corners to reduce the number of roaches entering your house.

3. Use Sticky Traps

These traps will help get rid of cockroaches and also identify their routes. However, this method is time-consuming and unsightly.

FAQs

 

Conclusion

The home remedies discussed above will help you make your home roach-free overnight. These cockroach remedies are effective, safe, and eco-friendly.

Also, use the prevention methods above to stop roaches from sheltering and feeding on your property.

Reference

University of Nebraska–Lincoln – Cockroach Control Manual

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